1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to towed agricultural implements, and, more particularly, to forward folding agricultural implements.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the quest for additional efficiencies, towed agricultural implements such as cultivators and seeders have been designed with ever increasing lateral spans to increase the efficiency of a given pass through a field. In order to safely transport the implement between fields and to comply with government road clearance requirements, such implements are foldable between the field position and a transport position. One form of configuration is to articulate the outer extremities so that they fold forward or backward from a laterally extending field position to a transport position in which the components are essentially parallel to a tow bar connecting the implement with a tractor. The tow bar for a forward folding agricultural implement is typically telescoping so that it has a retracted operational position and an extended transport position. Alternatively, the outer extremities may be rear folding to the transport position.
While this provides a convenient way of configuring the towed implement between a operational and transport position, it adds additional stresses to ground support wheels for the wing assemblies. The reason is that the tractor, during the fold and unfold operation, remains stationary and the articulation of the components causes side stresses on some of the ground support wheels during the process. In addition, the forces on the ground support wheels can cause ruts in the soil.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a folding process that minimizes stresses on the towed implement ground support wheels and ground disturbance.